Moray East was the first part of the Moray Firth Zone to be developed, and the first of the Round 3 projects to apply for (2012) and receive (2014) consent.

Part of this process included an Environmental impact Assessment, which involved extensive consultation with the individual, organisations and communities with an interest in what happens in the outer Moray Firth. The Environmental Statement including all studies carried out is available in the document library.

Moray East Key Facts:

Consent for construction of up to 1,116MW granted in 2016

CfD for 950MW awarded in 2017

Connection to National Grid at a new substation to be constructed at New Deer in Aberdeenshire via underground cable (planning permission granted by Aberdeenshire Council in 2014)

The 950MW Moray East offshore windfarm will generate power at £57.50/MWhr – or 5.75p/kWhr – which is less than half the price of power generated by offshore windfarms under construction today.

In 2017 Moray East was a successful participant in the UK’s second ‘Contract for Difference’ (CfD) auction. The CfD sets the price which will be paid for power generated for a period of 15 years. Eligible projects were invited to bid, with contracts awarded to projects onm the basis of those which could offer the lowest price for power.

Moray East represents a step-change in the delivery of renewable power in terms of cost and scale. The project will provide an abundant supply of low-carbon electricity at a highly competitive price. Because Moray East uses the UK’s own indigenous renewable natural resource of wind, the power generated does not depend on the import fossil fuels such as coal or gas, of thus improving the UK’s security of supply as well as driving down costs for consumers.

Construction on the project started in winter 2018, with commencement of the onshore works. Updates will be provided here as work progresses